Improvement in elevated railways



ICE.

SAMUEL H. SHREVE, OF TOMS RIVER, NEW JERSEY.

IMPROVEMENT IN ELEVATED RAILWAYS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 180,660, dated August1, 1876; application filed April 23, 1875.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, SAMUEL H. SHREVE, of TomsRiver, in the county of Ocean and State of New Jersey, have invented anew and Improved Method of Preventing the Derailment of Cars on Bridges,Elevated Railways,

and other places where rails are supported by a longitudinal beam orgirder; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exactdescription thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawing,and to the let-.- ters of reference marked thereon.

The nature of my invention consists in using the longitudinal beams orgirders, which support the rails over a span or opening, as guards toprevent the cars or other vehicles from overturning or running off thetrack in case of any accident occurring to throw the wheels oft therails, such as the breaking of the rails, or the wheels, or the axles,or any other cause. This I accomplish in various ways: first, as shownin Figure l, on the accompanying drawing, which representsa cross.-section, where A A are two longitudinal girders, resting at the endsupon supports, which are not shown in. the drawing, as they are no partof my invention. B is a beam, passing through the web of the girders,and supportin g the wooden beams O O, on which the rails rest.

The position of the ear-wheels is shown by the dotted lines in thefigure.

My invention is, instead of having the ties placed upon the longitudinalgirders, as is usually done, and the rails then placed upon the ties, tohave a portion (as much as may be necessary) of the longitudinal girdersA A rise up above the rails, so that if an axle, wheel, or rail breaksthe upper part of the longitudinal girder may form a support for thecar, engine, or other vehicle, and prevent their being thrown from thetrack.

The beam 13 B, which is shown as resting on the lower flange ot' thelongitudinal gird previous figure.

In eithermethod of arranging the girders, my invention is to bring theupper flanges of the inside girders very near the bottoms of the cars,or the boxes of the wheels, or near some guide, which may be attached insome manner to the vehicle, so that in case an axle (for example)breaks, the tendency of one or both sides of the car to fall down, or ofthe car to overturn, may be prevented by the bottom of the car, or theboxes, or the guides referred to resting upon the upper flanges ot' thegirders.

I claim--- In an elevated railway, the arrangement de scribed of the sup)orting-girders, laterally in respect to the wheels of the cars, andvertically in respect to the axles, so that in case the car leaves thetrack, or a Wheel breaks, the axles will bear on the girders, asspecified.

SAMUEL H. SHREVE. Witnesses:

WARREN O. ABBE, CHAS. B. MATH-IS.

